Box Score PHOENIX – Unbeaten Arizona Christian proved too much for Wayland Baptist as the 12
th-ranked Firestorm pulled away in the second half against the Pioneers to win here Saturday night, 42-12.
Playing their Central States Football League opener, the Pioneers (0-3) trailed just 14-6 at intermission after getting a pair of
Daniel Martinez field goals, from 37 and 36 yards, in the first half.
But Arizona Christian (3-0, 2-0 CSFL), the two-time defending conference champion, came out on fire in the second half and quickly took control of the game by scoring 28 third-quarter points.
Wayland quarterback
Mitchell Parsley scored the Pioneers' lone touchdown of the contest on a 15-yard run with 13:13 left in the game, capping the scoring. WBU's try for two failed.
Parsley completed 25-of-49 passes for 246 yards. A school-record 13 of his completions went to redshirt sophomore
Malik Sims of Amarillo, who broke the previous record of nine set last season against Arizona Christian by
Preston Woodard. Sims ended with 130 receiving yards, 16 shy of matching
Ben Owen's record of 146 also set in 2016 against the Firestorm. Owen had six catches for 36 yards Saturday.
Parsley, who was sacked three times, ran for 65 yards on 14 carries.
De'Sean Johnson added 57 yards on 11 carries.
Michael Nealy had nine tackles, including 1½ for loss, and forced a fumble to lead the WBU defense. Brian Johnson had seven stops and a pass break-up, while
Jared Brown tallied six tackles (one for loss), a forced fumble and a pass break-up.
Wayland ended with 409 yards of offense compared to ACU's 394. The Firestorm ran for 165 yards and passed for 229.
The game saw 16 punts, nine by Wayland. A Pioneer interception was the lone turnover.
After winning the first-ever meeting between the schools in 2014, the Pioneers have dropped the last three games to the Firestorm.
Having opened their season with three straight road games, the Pioneers make their home debut against Texas College (0-3, 0-1) at 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23 in Greg Sherwood Memorial Bulldog Stadium. The Steers, after falling to Lane (40-20) and Hardin-Simmons (74-0), lost their CSFL debut on Saturday at home against Southwestern Assemblies of God University, 52-7.
